RAGING SILENCE

The "Raging silence" represents the real starting point of the resurgence of Uriah Heep as a credible force. This album saw the formation of the band's most stable line up ever, and one which continues to this day. There was of course, one last upheaval to go through before this album was recorded, with Bernie Shaw (vocals, ex-Grand Prix, Praying Mantis, Stratus) and Phil Lanzon (keyboards, ex-Grand Prix, Sad Café and Sweet!) joining the band. Trevor Boulder had returned to the fold for the previous album, "Equator". Prior to recording "The roaring silence", this line up played in Russia, to massive audiences who had not previously witnessed live performances by a western rock band. The line up gelled immediately, and while this is by no means their best album, it is a noticeable improvement on its recent predecessors.

The opening track is an obvious, but sadly unsuccessful attempt to secure a hit single by simply covering a song which had already been a hit for someone else. Argent's "Hold your head up" was a great song, but despite the presence of one of Mick Box's great wah wah solos, Uriah Heep's interpretation was too faithful to the original and thus little more than a tribute. It was however the first track on a Heep studio album to include Bernie Shaw on vocals who, to the delight of many fans, sang much more in the way of David Byron than those who had come and gone since Byron had left the band. (While anyone familiar with the albums of Uriah Heep will be able to differentiate between Byron and Shaw's voices, Shaw's pitch and delivery are similar, allowing him to sing Byron era songs as they should be sung.)

Another cover version on the album is "When the war is over", which had previously been a hit in Australia for Cold Chisel and The Little River Band. It is the only ballad as such, and stands out on the album as one of the best tracks. Phil Lanzon immediately shows himself to be a great addition by co-writing many of the tracks, and "orchestrating" this one.

There are many signs throughout the album of the renewed confidence of the band. "Cry Freedom" has "Sweet freedom" references, while "Rough Justice" has a slow guitar solo in the middle of a rock track, along the lines of Deep Purple's "Strange kinda woman".

The harmonies are back to full strength, and although there are more than the usual quota of cover versions (three in all), the songwriting credits are well spread throughout the band. A welcome return to form of sorts, which provided the foundations for the band to once again become a coherent, credible unit.

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